The present invention relates generally to the field of less lethal munitions and, more particularly to a single piece non-lethal projectile for a training version of the less lethal munition.
Less lethal munitions utilized by law enforcement and military forces requires the need to regularly train in the use of these munitions to achieve and maintain proficiency in their deployment. For example, less lethal impact munitions which impart blunt energy to redirect, control, or incapacitate aggressive human targets, depend on accurate shot placement to achieve the desired outcome while minimizing the risk of serious injury. As with any munition fired from a firearm or launcher, accurate and consistent shot placement is only achieved through repetitive training with the actual munitions or realistic training variance.
With the increased use of impact munitions by law enforcement and military forces, as well as the increased numbers of those forces, there is a need for a cost-effective training munition that matches the performance of the actual munition while allowing the user to easily reload and re-use the training munition in the field. One way to decrease the cost of training munition is to design the projectile to be re-used multiple times. This is best accomplished by fabricating the projectile from a high impact polymer material that will withstand repeated firings and impacts without shattering. The cost is further reduced if the projectile can be molded as a single piece in high volume.
Various types of non-lethal munitions have been marketed and sold that have projectiles consisting of multiple components of different densities. This is done to allow tougher, heavier materials to be used on the parts of the projectile that must engage the barrel riffling, and to control the projectile center of gravity. To minimize the risk of injury due to blunt impact, the nose materials used in non-lethal projectiles are typically lower density rubber or foam materials which will deform upon impact with the target. A higher density base and a lower density nose combination are desirable for maximizing the gyroscopic stability and mask properties of a spin-stabilized projectile. Other training and reload kits have been marketed and sold that involve reloading munition projectiles into reloaded shell bases. This results in performance approximating the actual munition trajectory, but only minor cost savings due to the single-use projectile.
Consequently, a need exists for an inexpensive, single piece, reusable projectile that accurately reproduces the aerodynamic, flight stability and mass properties of current non-lethal projectiles, thereby producing an accurate representation of a non-lethal projectile trajectory for training purposes.